u/ScenicDrive-at5

"The journey of a thousand miles begins with a first step." To travel comes with patience. There will be moments of doing nothing. There will be moments of progress. The whole point is to take it all in stride, and you'll be okay. These guests didn't get that memo, though.

Before leaving earlier in the shift, my manager warned me of a small group we had coming in; some no-name traveling band who he described as being "drama queens." I met the band manager not too long after, and she was okay at that moment. She confirmed the members' rooms and said they'd trickle in over the course of the next few hours.

Things were going without much incident until later in the night when one of the last members had landed. He called for an airport pick-up; the shuttle had already made its way out for a flight crew. We house staff of a certain larger airline, and part of that contract is the shuttle waits for them even if other guests climb aboard.

A few minutes after that call, the band manager from earlier power-walked up to me all flustered. "Hey, one of my guys is sitting in the shuttle, and the driver is telling him they have to wait. Listen, he's already been delayed by a lot today, and he just wants to get to bed." I briefly explained to her how the driver was waiting on a flight crew and that it shouldn't be too much longer. She sighed in frustration and then snappily asked, "Well, is there a second shuttle we could send out to get him???"

Fixing my face before it got me in trouble, I simply replied, "No, ma'am. He'll just have to wait, okay? Shouldn't be long." She sighed again and just waved me off as she stomped away.

Perhaps no less than a minute later, I had the driver himself calling me. He got out of the shuttle to cool off because Mr. Bigshot was giving him grief. I told the driver, "Just hang out there. If he has a problem, he can get a rideshare."

All I could think of in that moment was the absurdity of it all. Mr. Bigshot thought he could boss around a courtesy shuttle, and the band manager actually thought it made sense to expect we'd just send a second vehicle specifically for him. Suffice it to say we actually do have a second vehicle, but they didn't need to know that. Even if we were silly enough to bend over for this, he'd still have to wait for it to arrive there.

It's almost like waiting is a part of the entire equation...

"Personal accountability" -- a rare resource in the world of customer service. If anything goes wrong in a service setting, it is definitely not the patron's fault. How dare you even dream they could make a mistake? Here's a story from a recent interaction I had with a mom who contorted her mind to believe the loss of her daughter's iPad was somehow on us.

The semi-curious thing about this situation is that it's technically a two-parter. See, this lady, "Avalon," had already approached someone at the Desk a day prior. According to her, the agent told her that Security would pull up footage and that someone would get back to her. Whoever had this convo with her, I do not know. I didn't even know this situation had transpired until Avalon came up to me to ask why no one had contacted her yet.

The situation happened in one of the lobby restrooms, wherein Avalon's daughter carried an iPad in and then forgot it on the counter after walking out. By the time they realized and checked back, it was gone. Thus, this was now a case of theft as far as Avalon was concerned. Put succinctly, she expected Security to comb through any available footage of the hallway/bathroom entrance and find the perpetrator.

My face got me in trouble before my mouth did, because she saw my look of bewilderment and then outright asked, "Is this something you guys normally even take care of? Because the girl yesterday assured me this would be handled. I don't want to get jerked around for no reason if you're not gonna do anything!"

I reiterated that this was the first I was hearing about the situation and then told her, "Honestly, I don't know what else Security would be able to do. If there's even a camera that can see the bathroom entrance, it would be hard to ID anyone. We have a lot of folks staying over, but also a lot of event-goers."

She huffed, puffed, and moaned, "See, this is very aggravating. My daughter (who was casually milling about as kids do) has been waiting all day for some sort of answer, and now you're telling me it's a loss? That's kind of ridiculous! That thing is worth over $200, you know?!"

I really had to hold back telling this woman what I was really thinking, but I simply gave a sympathetic shrug and politely ended the conversation.

She then moved on over to the poor shuttle driver a few feet away and gave him yet another earful about the situation. Of course, he then came over to me to inquire, and I told him that she had just spoken to me. Funnily enough, a pick-up call came through just a bit before he walked over, so it gave him an excuse to boot.

Clearly not done trying to pull as many strings as she could, about a half-hour later Avalon then lit up our text service. She once again droned about how upset she was and that she was appalled at the way we were "sweeping it under the rug." She even tried to bring up the cost of her one-week stay as a bargaining chip, before adding on "You people aren't cheap, and this is how you treat us?!"

Not too long before this, I did speak to a guard who basically also shrugged. He said the footage was "grainy as sand," and even so, he wasn't scrubbing through hours of footage "just for that." I didn't relay this to Avalon but did tell her definitively that there wasn't anything more we could do about the matter. Her response to that was as sharp and snide as ever: "Good to know you just let thieves roam around here!"

It goes without saying that there's quite the lesson about responsibility and accountability that both mom and daughter could learn from this (they will not.)

EDIT: I also want to add that while Avalon refers to the device as an "iPad", she could've very well went a cheap Fire Tablet or something similar. The lack of mention of using the 'Find My' feature seems to suggest she was just using "iPad" as a catch-all term.

"Service recovery" -- a term I've come to loathe. It carries the expectation that you, the humble worker, have the opportunity to manage the emotions of the (allegedly) adult customer before you. It is basically up to you to turn this person's frown upside down. This is a story of how I thought I managed to do that, only for the guest to walk themselves back to being disgruntled all within the span of a few minutes.

As I've indicated in previous posts, my hotel is event-focused. Part of that is its large outside event space that over 50% of the rooms face. It's up seasonally from about the beginning of Spring through the end of Summer. With those aspects laid out, it should help paint the picture of the conundrum we find in this story.

"Syracuse" had some big feelings two nights into her four-night stay. She lit up our text service with a somewhat polite yet pointed message, inquiring when the banquet that was happening would be over. She was done putting up with its music.

At the time she asked, there was an hour left for the event. I informed her of this and apologized for the situation. I also explained how we were sold out, so unfortunately some folks would inevitably have to face that space. It was especially hard considering the event-goers for the banquet made up a huge majority of the room count during this time.

She actually accepted my explanation and thanked me for the insight. I then offered a reduced rate for that night and threw in some loyalty points for good measure; she was appreciative and appeared to have calmed down a great bit.

Alright, service recovered, right? Seemed so...for about ten minutes.

Another message came through, and there she was having successfully backtracked all the goodwill we had just forged together.

I'm going to just assume that she must've spoken with her roommates and perhaps someone got in her ear. Initially, she said, "Oh, that's understandable. This is a very large hotel, so I guess you guys host a lot of events. This is our first time here, so we didn't know."

Now she went, "Well, you all should have planned this better. We should have been informed or at least have been placed away from the noise, seeing that we're staying for four whole nights."

Hand firmly over face, I again tried to smooth things over. I informed her that there'd also be a concert out there the next day, just in case they wanted to cut their stay short and leave in the morning. I also mentioned they could inquire in the morning if a room move would be possible. All I got in return was more scorn about how leaving early or moving rooms wouldn't be possible, as they had plans all day, but they "still wished we got a warning before checking in."

We basically left it at that as she signed off with a goodnight, and I returned the favor.

You can't win them all. FWIW, I didn't check her in. I agree with her and everyone else that it's terrible when folks who've got nothing to do with an event have to deal with it. I have yet to understand why management wants it this way yet fusses over scores. This is 'the never-ending story.'

The Internet can be confusing for some folks. I can appreciate that. I can also appreciate mis-clicks and even the occasional misinterpretation. Putting in your CC info and confirming a payment, however, is when the eyebrows go up.

An older lady called the other night. She was sweet, but understandably annoyed. Here I was, being another (unwilling) obstacle in her odyssey to get her money back from a prepaid, nonrefundable third-party reservation.

By her own admission, she had already spoken to someone from the corporate reservation team who had informed her as to what her booking consisted of. Consequently, they were unable to help her. Now she's found herself to me, who's parroting basically the same thing.

According to her, she was "just looking around and was hoping to reserve" but she "didn't mean to actually make a payment." I explained to her that her money would now be with the third-party, so she'd have to follow up with them. "They don't answer their phones! I can't speak to a real person!", she exclaimed.

Again, I understood her plight but could not offer any further assistance. At that point, she went into a bit of a rant as to how we should know that there's a site out there that's impersonating us. She genuinely felt that she booked directly, but confirmed that she merely typed the hotel's name into Google and clicked the first link.

I knew trying to have a back-and-forth wasn't going to go anywhere useful, so I just left it at: "I understand you're upset, ma'am. I'm sorry that I can't help you further. It was at this point she said, in a still surprisingly pleasant tone: "Well don't you worry. I'm going to be making a report the Better Business Bureau and the legislatures! This is fraud!" I simply replied: "Okay, do whatever you need to do."

Read your email confirmations. Make sure they're correct. You and I should not be making a discovery about your reservation when you're coming up to the desk. Sometimes we can help, but this is one of those days where we couldn't.

During a busy weekend afternoon, a lady comes up to check-in. At this point, it had been a straight hour of near non-stop action, so I was just going through the motions. But then I had to pause and really think for a moment, as I couldn't find her anywhere.

I backed up a few days, and then I saw she had a cancelled reservation. I asked: "Ma'am, did you know that your reservation was cancelled?" She politely responded, "Oh, yeah, yeah. I was with the group block, but then I only needed one night. But 'they' told me there was a two-night lock on it so I had to rebook."

As a slight aside, almost anytime we have a group or two with such a requirement, the few days leading up to their arrival are filled with folks trying to get one night only but still wanting the discounted rate. Suffice it to say, 'it don't work that way!' But, I digress.

When I couldn't find the rebooked reservation, I asked her to show me her confirmation. She goes into her phone, and I could tell from the way her face had subtly sunk that as soon as she opened the email, she knew she was in trouble.

She handed it over to me, and in a few seconds I found the problem: she had booked the correct brand but in a completely different location. Not just that, but this other location was hours away. It was named after a nearby airport, and the address was right there in the header. Clearly, this was her first time putting all these dots together. [Think: "The No-Tell Motel at Last-Stop Airport"]

I informed her of this as I was handing her back her phone, adding, "Unfortunately, we don't have any additional rooms tonight." Her face stiffened, and she looked down. Her lips quivered as if she were about to cry, but all she said in a low, angry tone was, "That person wasn't very helpful!" and then she stormed off.

I'm assuming she was referring to whomever she mentioned calling before to rebook. While it may be true that the other person picked the wrong hotel, the duty still fell on her to double-check her own email.

It's genuinely amazing to me how often people think they can simply yell their way to their desired solution. True, some places bend over backward for such individuals. But here's a tale of how this tactic fell apart for a would-be breakfast bully as he was checking in.

As I've mentioned in past entries, my hotel has a kinda crummy (crumby?) breakfast system. It's not the typical "complimentary" continental set-up.

Instead, you either purchase it as part of the rate or you can select a rate without it and decide whether or not to visit the in-house restaurant later. The included package covers "up to 2 adults" in a room and anyone additional can simply pay at the restaurant like normal. Yes, it's nickel-and-diming. No, I don't like it, but 'it is what it is.'

Regardless, Mr. Bacon Bully decided that these stipulations shouldn't apply to him and his party of eight other people across their 3-night stay. He assumed that the rate marked as "breakfast included" should cover everyone in a room. He and his family had three rooms, thus the total count of nine individuals.

He booked through a third-party, and admittedly, they take the whole 'look at the fine print' aspect to the nth degree.

On their particular site, you have to go out of your way to find the expanded parameters of what the breakfast rate entails. The thing is, at first I tried to show him a printout from my hotel's official website that more clearly features the rate's description. He shoved it off the table, saying "That's what your website says! I didn't book there! It's not my problem what [third-party] says or doesn't say! That's for you people to figure out! My understanding is that everyone should be included, and that's what I want! If you're not going to do it, I need to speak to someone above you, NOW!"

There was no Manager-on-Duty at that time, so I simply stood my ground and responded: "Sir, your interpretation of the policy may be one thing, but this is the policy. There's no one else to speak to about this at this time. The breakfast is paid for up to two people. All you have to do is pay for additional guests."

Again, he wasn't having it. He tried to argue: "If I knew this place had such a silly system, do you think I would've booked here? Can't you see the size of my family?"

I so badly wanted to tell him: "Then you should have booked somewhere that offers free breakfast", but I simply left it at: "Sir, these are the conditions. It's your choice what you want to do. Any further issue you have with your rate, reach out to [third-party.]"

In all, he and his family took nearly a half-hour to check-in all because he felt the need to go on a croissant crusade. The other adults in the party were talking on the side, but Mr. Bacon Bully was thankfully the only one causing a fuss.

Eventually, he acquiesced and they got their keys and left. But, the story is not quite over yet.

Mr. Bacon Bully still tried to call corporate about the whole ordeal, who of course reached out to us (how do people think their complaints get handled?) That phone call lasted not even 5 minutes, as the representative simply went: "Oh, okay, I understand" when the situation was explained.

The next morning, I wasn't even on property but made sure to phone the desk to alert that crew (though it was also in our communication report.) When I came in later that day for my actual shift, I asked one of my colleagues if Mr. Bacon Bully reappeared for round two. And, sure enough, he did. He and some of the other adult family members tried to be sly by insisting they didn't receive any vouchers for the kids. Yet, their efforts were thwarted once more.

If only folks would put all this effort into simply listening to staff. Nah, that's too easy.

Customer service has taught me that some folks are simply 'fit to be upset. 'That is, whatever they're mad about, they're not changing their minds. You can even reason that they maybe want to be upset about it because their level of determination seems impenetrable. This is one such individual.

"Mr. Midsomer" visited us for just one night. Despite his relatively short stay, we clearly made a big impression on him as he left not just one but two separate reviews: one within our internal surveys and another posted to our corporate site.

Across both, he highlighted the same key issue--the A/C was too cold. "It was so cold, my wife and I were freezing. It required a heavy sweater or jacket, neither of which we had, with it being the middle of summer."

Ah, interesting. So, he admits it's the middle of summer. Fair enough. The second part of it is even better. According to him, he brought his concern to the desk, and whomever he spoke to was "unacceptably flippant," as they apparently responded: "Well, sir, it is currently summertime, and we need the A/C on."

He then went on a short rant about how such a response proves that we're wasteful: we're wasting money and unnecessary amounts of energy to cool the building down to an "unbearable degree," in addition to contributing to climate change as a result.

The most intriguing thing about this is that he was complaining about the hallway A/C. Specifically the one on the floor he was staying on. No idea if he was camped outside his own room for an extended period, but clearly it was enough that we apparently almost delivered him a nasty case of hypothermia.

I believe it's worth mentioning his reported duress has not been echoed to us by anyone else.

As a relevant aside, the lobby A/C had broken down just a little while ago for two weeks, one of which was during an intense heatwave. Thus, there were fans aplenty trying to help. It definitely got us some side-eye and snide remarks at check-in.

"You can't please everyone."

My colleagues and I have often noticed how there tends to be a general theme across each shift. This post comes from a variety of interactions I experienced during a recent shift where the overarching theme was undoubtedly "pomposity"; hence, the title. Sorry if you now have an earworm.

- The bride of a wedding happening the next day (Sunday) came up to inquire about getting an early check-in for her mom's room. We were having this conversation Saturday night, and the hotel was nearly sold out. So, we told her it was very unlikely that the room would get done any faster tomorrow. She made a face and said: "Well, you know, I was hoping it'd get priority because -- mother of the bride and all!" We re-explained the logistic conundrum in the way of her desire, and she gave a half-hearted: "Well, thanks anyway. I'll talk to the morning staff."

- An attendee of the aforementioned wedding came to check-in at the same time as a buddy of his. Buddy booked inside the group block, whereas this guest, "Gold", did not. He didn't make this discovery until right there at check-in. Gold thought he booked properly and kept referencing an apparent phone conversation where he said, "This isn't the price she told me it would be." The "she" was apparently a call center rep. Nevertheless, Gold was not too pleased at the over $200 difference between his rate and his buddy's and was trying to dispute it right there at the desk. I told him the block was sold out and that I was unable to change the rate at that time, especially since he did not have a confirmation to show otherwise. I gave him the name of the sales agent spearheading the wedding, who'd be in on Monday (again, this was a Saturday.) He also wanted my name, because of course.

- We had a small but vivacious group block that consisted of middle-aged women. Nothing conspicuous about that, but what makes their situation story-worthy was that their room block was full of shares. That is, 2 or 3 sharing a room. Because of the way a typical hotel PMS (property management system) works, only one card is authorized for the room and tax at check-in. They'd all been there a week and now wanted to split the bill before departure the next day. Problem was, the PMS gets very mad when you try to do that and even more mad when you try to do that before checkout day. This was explained to each posse that came up, and they all took it well except for one. "Quartz" outright said that "the system is stupid, and I want this done now!" We went back and forth for a bit before she demanded: "I want to speak to someone else!" at 10:30pm. When, of course, there was no one else at that time, she then demanded the corporate number. As I handed her the requested note, I said: "Do with this whatever you please."

- A pair of women came up asking for a late check-out the next day, as their flight would be in the evening. When told it wasn't available, one of them, "Iron", got a little annoyed. She then asked if we had any sister properties in the area with an outside pool (we do not have one and there isn't any in the immediate vicinity.) Guess their thought was that another hotel would just let them use their pool? Either way, Iron was also annoyed by that answer, and I tried to explain the lack of them is probably because we have some heavy winters. I showed her a picture of the record snowfall we had just at the top of the year, and she tried to turn it into a weird competition where she said: "Well, where I'm from, we were -25 for weeks, so your snow probably melted within just a few days." I told her it actually took about two months, and she curiously didn't have much of a response for that.

Pro-tip: Service workers do not want to fight you. If you're getting a "no" for whatever reason, best believe that 99.9% of the time, that's simply the answer.

Fetching guest packages shouldn't be a complex task, but it sometimes is. While it's not my favorite part of the job, it's never gone so left as this situation.

Package Paula approached the desk one afternoon, inquiring about her mail. As per usual, I asked her: "Do you have a delivery confirmation?" She casually replied: "No. I have a receipt that says it should be delivered today." [Well, that doesn't exactly help...]

I then asked her: "Okay, do you at least have the tracking number?" Again, a deadpan reply of "Nope."

One of the other agents just visited the mail room about 45 minutes prior, so I went to go check our back office. Nothing was under Package Paula's name, and I informed her accordingly. She was fine with that and simply said: "No worries, I'll come back sometime later." That was the last I had from her for the day.

The next afternoon rolls around, and we're now about 24 hours separated from the first interaction. It felt like déjà vu, as not only did she happen to end up speaking to me specifically again, but our back-and-forth of package-related Q&A went almost exactly the same as last time. She still didn't have a delivery confirmation, and the tracking number was "Upstairs in her room" [???].

Unlike before, however, I wasn't aware of any recent trips to the mailroom, so off I went to the literal other side of the very large building to go take a gander. We happened to also have a small long-term group staying with us at the time, and they were ordering hauls daily. Thus, I discovered a good handful of items, including the one for Package Paula.

With a cart loaded up, I lapped back to the lobby, and Package Paula, along with her friend caught sight of me before I had even fully returned to the front desk.

I handed her the box, and she said: "Oh, thank you." I said a faint "You're welcome" as I was partially out of breath from the long walk. I had already turned my back to the ladies when Package Paula then asked: "So, when was this delivered anyway?" Mildly annoyed and maneuvering the cart through a door at this point, I let out an admittedly less-than-polite "I don't know" in the typical connotation. Her friend got snippy and sternly muttered in return: "Oh goodness, have a better attitude, whydon'cha?" as they shuffled past me. I said nothing more.

The reason for my annoyance was partially fueled by the fact that I literally would not have that info, in addition to the fact it was Package Paula's own tracking page that would be able to answer her question. After all the prior neglect, she eventually would finally look at it, however.

In the time it took me to drop off the remaining packages into the back office, return the cart back to where I got it at the other side of the hotel and then finally make my way back to the front desk, Package Paula had gone upstairs, fetched her phone and planted herself in waiting once more.

Yet again, I was intercepted before I could even make it to the desk, and I could already tell by the look on her face what was coming. She had thrust her phone in my face with her tracking page finally pulled up. She belted: "This was delivered at 10:48am yesterday! When I came to you yesterday, all you did was go into that back room and told me nothing was there!! This laziness is appalling! I needed this box yesterday and had to wait for no good reason!"

Taken aback, I tried to remain calm and explained: "Well, ma'am, my colleague had only just come from the mailroom about a half-hour or so prior yesterday and brought various packages up. So, I don't know why she didn't see your box." As she was glaring at my nametag, she then spewed out: "Well, she also deserves a talking to! Either way, I'm disgusted by your poor service skills!" before turning and walking away. I simply said back: "You have a great day, then" and she barked back without turning around: "You, too!"

Remember, readers, Package Paula never bothered to pull up her tracking info before coming to me the first time nor even the second time. When the box was actually delivered, it had been there 4 hours before I had even got on property. No idea why the other agent didn't see it, and either way, it's not her [the agent's] fault.

In truth, I should have gone back to the mailroom the first time Package Paula came up. But, considering both the distance and time of day, I figured that if her box wasn't seen on the most recent trip, no new deliveries would be there. Many-a-time we've gone to look for a package for a guest that has zero helpful info, only to scour and find nothing. I just had that very same scenario a few days prior and wasn't in the mood to go on another wild goose chase, especially since Package Paula did not have a hard delivery notice.

As a slight aside, this is the second time anyone's ever waited to seek me out with full intention to yell at me. That's dedication, I guess.

TL;DR - A disgruntled guest came up to me across two separate days asking for a package. The first day, my colleague had just visited the mailroom (at the physical other end of the hotel) about 45 minutes prior and didn't bring her package up to the back office. She didn't have a delivery confirmation either, so I assumed it wasn't delivered at all yet when I didn't see it in the back office. The same guest came back the next day, still with no confirmation. This time, I went to go look in the mailroom, and it was there. After I had already given it to her, she came back down a third time and waited around until I returned to the lobby to chew me out for not giving her the package the day prior.

My submissions have been aplenty lately as the people continue to surprise me. Today, I walked into quite the kerfuffle, where a couple who accidentally showed up a day late wanted us to take responsibility for that happening.

This happened just minutes into the beginning of the shift, so such a fantastic way to start the work day. This couple, who we'll call "the Cakes", accidentally made their reservation for a day earlier than they had thought. Now that they were showing up the next day, we were completely sold out and their reservation had been cancelled.

Mr. Cake took the helm of the situation, saying that while he understood the policy, he found it "very baffling" that we didn't reach out to him. He essentially thought that we would have a system where we reach out to every guest per day to confirm their plans.

If this were a very exclusive boutique hotel with 10 or so rooms, I could understand. But, a hotel like mine with a few hundred rooms? That's a different story.

They were 'pleasant' but still expressed their disappointment with our "apparent lack of care." The conversation eventually ended, but the lobby they did not depart.

The Cakes were part of a group, and some of their group members were in the lobby at the same time. They were all chatting it up and Mr. Cake, within earshot of us, was lamenting about "how they gave away our room" and "didn't even bother to reach out."

He then droned on about how he apparently got such a service from an entirely different hotel as a high-tier member at a completely different brand [pro tip: there are dedicated support teams/hotlines for high-tier loyalty levels at several hotel brands.]

Their conversation continued for a bit, and eventually the pair sunk into two of the lobby chairs directly in front of our terminals. My colleagues and I were a little perturbed that they weren't moving, but just continued on. About 20 minutes had passed when the group lead came up and announced to them: "Well, I worked my magic! You've got your room!"

As it would turn out, after they complained to her, she went to the sales agent that was serving as this group's contact. Taking advantage of a cancellation, it seems they were able to shuffle some stuff around and reinstate their reservation. Again, this couple was here for about 40 minutes at this point, hence the change.

Even after they finally got what they wanted, Mr. Cake still felt the need to bring up the ordeal from earlier. He 'laughed' at the explanation of a cancellation saving the day, however.

In any case, their confirmation email would've shown the dates. They neglected to look until only after they came up to us. Lack of accountability continues to be in high demand these days in this industry...

Patience is a very scarce resource in the world of customer service. Everyone thinks they're #1; the highest priority that must be served at a moment's notice. Such as was the case with this individual...

Let's call her Turquoise. She and her husband were part of a very large group of older folks. Some members of the group were trying to check-in as early as 7:30 that morning, but especially because we were sold out the night before, these requests could not be honored.

I had come in for the 3-11 shift, and was only about a half-hour into it before my first interaction with Turquoise. The mass that had grown over the course of the morning was finally being moved along as rooms became available, but there was actively a line in the lobby until around 4:30pm.

At some point during this early bit of chaos, Turquoise, who was already checked in, called down saying that their room lacked a shower chair. She needed one for her paralyzed husband. I told her I'd let Housekeeping know.

About 15 minutes had gone by and I genuinely hadn't yet had a chance to pass along the request. We were still cutting down the line and the phones were, of course, also ringing off the hook. As it would turn out, Turquoise actually joined the live queue and just so happened to end up coming up to my terminal. She was annoyed, and reiterated her request. Once she was done, with a heartfelt tone and a smile, I said: "Actually, it was me you spoke to! Housekeeping is very caught up right now, as are we, but someone will be with you soon."

"And when's that gonna be?" she snapped back. I told her: "Ma'am, I can't speak for Housekeeping, but it should only be a few minutes." Still agitated, she shot back: "That's not good enough for me! My husband is hot and sweaty and I need to help bathe him now! We have an important dinner to get to in an hour; are you telling me I'll be late for that?!"

Trying to keep it together, I somberly replied: "Ma'am, I understand your frustration. All I am asking for is a little patience." Still not satisfied, she put her hand on her hips and said: "Listen, I can see you all are very busy right now, but this is unacceptable. I need a manager." The FDM was actively checking people in by the first terminal, but either way, I glazed over her request with: "Ma'am, like I said, Housekeeping is responsible for bringing this up to you and they will handle it soon."

She left with a 'harumph' and I took the brief moment of her walking away to finally patch the request through. Didn't hear from her for the rest of the night, thankfully.

I understood her plight, but the indifference to the sea of people (her fellow group members) she actually decided to wait in just to come and bicker was an interesting choice to me.

When booking a hotel, it is imperative that you properly read your booking confirmation. That way, you avoid doing what this fine lady did, which earned her no additional awards aside from bonafide frustration.

No-Show Nelly had two third-party reservations: one under her and one under her husband, No-Show Nate. We didn't have the pleasure of interfacing with him, but his wife provided more than enough energy for the both of them.

While these ressies were not prepaid, they were still booked using the Big E. That will become important in just a moment.

Pass-ons completed, I was only minutes into my 3-11 shift when my manager and one of the morning agents were wrapping up their text-based convo with No-Show Nelly. The agent was on the newer side, so she did the wise thing of referring the situation over to the FDM, who respectfully told No-Show Nelly that she would not be getting a refund for her derelict reservations. There must have been a phone call prior to the text messages, as the thread began with an agent having sent a folio that showed the no-show charge.

No-Show Nelly seemed to conveniently misinterpret the $0 balance as evidence that she didn't owe anything. As I was trying to fully ascertain the length and breadth of the ordeal, my manager had left, and only minutes later, No-Show Nelly's caller ID lit up on the phone. Oh, fun.

We jumped right into the deep end immediately, but she was 'being nice' about it all. She made a point to mention that she understood the concept of policies and why they needed to be enforced, but she was really hoping we'd "show her some grace," as she was not expecting a no-show penalty to be an entire night's stay.

"If it were $50 or something, I could hang with that. But between these two bookings, you people have charged me over $600! That's kind of crazy, I feel," she protested.

See, both ressies were for one-night over a weekend. So, each one was worth about $300 and change before taxes. All the more reason why it was interesting that we were having this conversation at all...You realize a month later that you're out $600?

I pulled up the actual confirmation, which details the no-show/cancellation policy. I read it verbatim. She claimed she'd never seen it before and wanted evidence, which I then sent over to her.

As she read it, she claimed: "So I'd never even gotten this booking confirmation from (hotel name) before right now, so how was I supposed to know?" I said: "Well, it would've been emailed to you when you booked."

To that, she replied: "Well, what's the email address you have for me?" I then said: "We don't have an email for you, ma'am. When booking through a third-party, they rarely provide us guest details aside from names."

This is when she tried to catch us in a 'gatcha moment.' "So, you just admitted you don't have my email. You just sent me this confirmation for the first time. So, again, how is it my fault?! I wasn't trying to be a jerk and not come; our flights got cancelled. I went into my app and cancelled the stay from there after that happened."

I tried to explain to her (while attempting not to sound skeptical) that even if she did do that, those changes never came into our system. Either way, she would have seen a similar policy in whatever confirmation Big E would've sent her. I then firmly stated it's up to the guest to reach out directly if their plans change.

She demanded to speak to the manager, and I told her: "She's gone for today, but it was her who texted you earlier and said a refund would not be possible in this situation." Not keen on fully giving up, No-Show Nelly let out a big sigh and said: "Us going in circles like this isn't really helping. Thanks for your time, but have [manager's name] call me tomorrow, yeah?"

The FDM did not call her. No-Show Nelly remains with her no-show charges.

Read your confirmations, folks.

It's been almost exactly four years since my wife and I moved into our first (and so far, only) apartment. It's a very humble three-level building split into four units. The area is fine, but this building definitely stands out as being 'that' house.

The now-former occupants of the second floor, its own unit, are the reason why.

Since before we even got here, the yard was worse for wear. Miscellaneous items along the perimeter, and a random new one would be added to the front yard every so often. Things that don't belong outside: a microwave once, then a car seat another...the list goes on.

This would be a pattern from them and an important detail shortly.

Their slovenly way of life was reflected in just about everything except their personal appearance. They look perfectly normal and even dress stylishly. If I saw them out and about as random passersby, I never would imagine that their actual home would be the equivalent of a rat's nest (foreshadowing.)

We live on the third floor, and the only means to access our door is by passing their side door that's part of a very narrow staircase. Throughout the years, we'd catch glimpses of the inside, and every-single-time it looked like the wildest party was just thrown the night before. They were just content with living in clutter. The inside of their cars was no different.

On that note, despite there being only two adults in the home and a single teenager, they somehow managed to accumulate quite a collection over the years. This includes a disabled oldie that we first met living on the curb but was then moved to the side of the small driveway where it remains even today--the day they've finally left. More on this soon.

Flashback to our first few months; we quickly came up with a nickname for this family--the "F-Bombers."

They earned that because of the very loud and animated fights they would have inside their apartment, which would sometimes even audibly and physically spill out into the street. Many-a-time one would be screaming at the other with one being outside and the other inside. I can even recall one holiday night, well after midnight, where we were awoken to the girlfriend having fisticuffs with her twin sister while the boyfriend very drunkenly tried to break it up.

While the fighting eased up as the years went on, their horrible ways did not. The landlord, or should I say, the property management company, eventually cleaned up the yard during our second year. Boyfriend F-Bomber got into an argument with the cleanup crew the day they came, asking (very loudly, of course), "Why are you even doing this?!" Thankfully, his protest was ignored, and at last, our tiny little yard finally started to look like a proper one. That didn't last too long, though.

The random deposits of various items and furniture continued. One morning, while going downstairs, we were quickly interrupted by a series of large items almost completely blocking the staircase. Remember; it's our only means of access. They had an entirely separate entrance all to themselves and so decided to use ours as storage. Those items stayed stuffed in for about a week before my wife and I eventually hummed them out to the back of the yard. They were conveniently moved shortly after that...wonder why?

That same property management company was notified the morning we discovered the junk, and their solution for it was to advise us to "talk about it with your neighbor."

See, we tried that strategy many times. But always the blame was shifted, and never was there ever an apology. This really came to a head when they decided to get a puppy...a pitbull puppy. I have nothing against the breed, but I vividly remember the day I pulled up to the building and saw them playing with him in the yard. My blood boiled; I was seething. I knew this was going to be awful, and boy was it.

Within days, there were droppings all over...of course, our side of the yard. The only access to our staircase.

It's also the biggest portion of the yard, so I guess they figured it was the optimal place for him. Another note was written to them, and it was met with the half-hearted attempt at blaming the first-floor occupants. Funny, we met that family with dogs already, and their door was on the opposite side of the building. Never had a problem before now. Most curious.

This would be an ongoing problem right on up into this year, when, after taking pictures of the droppings practically on the walkway, we were met with the most jovial reply of: "Argue with yourselves!"

Remember what I said about their car collection? Well, as the years have gone on, the highest number of cars they were in possession of at once became six. The oldie was joined by the girlfriend's sister's disabled car last winter, which sat at the opposite end of the driveway for 7 months. This became the biggest headache in the world as frequent heavy snowfall this season resulted in a series of extended street parking bans. Thus, the use of the limited driveway was required. And yet there were many days where my wife and I opted to stay elsewhere, as there was simply no space between all the units--all because of the F-Bombers.

I can go on, but it all really amounts to these being awful, nasty, no-good, inconsiderate people.

Diplomacy was met with ire, and all they really knew how to do was just be the worst version of themselves. They truly are the embodiment of 'main character syndrome'--literally nothing and no one else matters, as far as they're concerned.

But, after all these years of it seeming like they'd never face any consequences...after countless letters to them, emails to management, and even a call to the police a few weeks ago--they're finally gone.

See, our building was sporadically put up for sale at the top of the spring. The actual landlord reached out to all the tenants for the first time ever. He had always been in the shadows; we never dealt with him directly or really even knew him, as the property management company handled everything.

The sale was very unnerving as no one could give a straight answer, especially as it related to the fate of all the tenants. Well, we're all still here...except that family. The new owners, a couple, seem genuinely sweet, and for now, all communication is directly to them. When we first met in-person, it took all of 30 seconds for us to discuss that family. They promised us the situation was being handled, especially considering the amazing people got themselves infested with mice (thankfully, it hasn't spread to the other units.)

Here we are, almost three months after the sale, and now the F-Bombers are O-U-T out! The new owners made it their mission that this would be the case.

It's safe to say that had this sale not gone through, the F-Bombers would likely still be here. We gleefully watched them throw their seemingly endless sea of stuff into their cars. It took about four days, but as I'm writing this, they finally pulled away for presumably the final time a few hours ago.

I went down to the street just to make sure...no lights. Nothing in the windows. Tonight, there's been no stomping as they trot up their staircase like horses... Finally.

This building still looks 'ehhhh.' But, maybe, just maybe, now some real TLC can finally be put into it that won't be undone within a week. The cancer has been extracted.

I'm ecstatic, but I'll be real; I'm morbidly curious as to where they've ended up...

May you too eventually be rid of your no-good neighbors.

TL;DR - Our small apartment building is finally free of the horrible family that occupied the second floor. They were junky, inconsiderate, rude people that broke every rule of the lease, including getting a pitbull that dropped all over the yard. From leaving random items strewn about, to having frequent fights both inside and outside, they are the epitome of 'no-good neighbors.' Now, three months after the building has been sold to new owners that actually have concern and a backbone, this family has been evicted.

Ah, yes, the glory of an early check-in. A most coveted hotel request. Yet, people always have impossible expectations surrounding it. This is one of the most creative ways I've been asked about it thus far.

The summer is our busiest season. Many days are 'big flips', where most if not the entire house is checking out with the same volume checking in. As you'd imagine, Housekeeping is stretched to the max at this time. I always do my due diligence in explaining the reality of the situation to folks, hoping their synapses would fire off properly and thus allowing them to calmly accept the circumstances like reasonable adults.

Well, we have a shortage of that in this industry.

On this particular day, a wedding party was checking in. They came only an hour or so after our check-out time, and like I said, the situation was explained to them. Most took it well, but one middle-aged couple in particular was the first to run short on patience.

On their second attempt at an early check-in, it was the wife I interfaced with. She pouted when she got the news that it was still not ready, but then deployed her party trick. She unsheathed an oh, so fancy metal credit card. 'Ya know the one.' Tapping (dinging?) it against the counter, she slyly asked: "Even if I reserved it with this Platinum card?"

I resisted raising an eyebrow and grinning like I really wanted to, as I was mildly impressed at her creativity. Instead, I merely said: "Ma'am, the form of payment doesn't change the fact that Housekeeping is still cleaning the rooms. They're aiming to be ready at check-in time."

She pouted again and gave a raspy: "Alrighty then..." as she slinked away.

They eventually did manage to get in an hour early (because of course, giving up is not an option.) As a slight aside, it will never cease to surprise that wedding guests genuinely believe they're royalty when it comes to hotel reservations.

A Super Shiny member came pretty much 'off the street' and expected the gates of paradise to open for him. Here's how expectations met reality.

Sold-out weekend night; multiple groups are in-house, and only a handful of arrivals remain. This is our busiest season, and our rates are at their highest. Regardless of the circumstances, Mr. Shiny had weaved himself quite the story as he came up to me.

He explained that he was staying at an A-BNB that turned out to be "not very good," and so here he was turning to [the brand]. "Let's see if you all can be heroes tonight," he said with a subtle smile.

Meanwhile, I was trying my best not to show the insane amount of surprise and skepticism that was churning in my head. While his story made sense to me, I already knew it was going to feel like pulling teeth to explain to him why we'd actually instead be the 'villains' in his story.

I broke down all the components of the evening that I outlined in the intro. His smile dropped, and now he looked mildly annoyed. He said: "So, again, I'm a shiny member. And you all are supposed to have a stock of rooms always kept aside for people like us." Remaining cordial but firm, I simply replied: "Sir, I'm not quite sure of that policy; it's the first I've ever heard of it. So, I'm sorry if you've received some misinformation, but in any case, we're completely sold out tonight."

For a second, I thought his next move would've been to demand that we 'walk' someone. In short, that would involve booting someone from their reservation and giving it to him instead. While I know such a thing exists within the industry, we definitely don't do it (or at least, have never been put in a position to do so.)

Thankfully, he didn't say that. He surprisingly accepted the reality of the situation but then wanted me to play travel agent and asked about what other properties within the brand were nearby.

As I started to direct him towards the nearest one, he pulled out his phone and was using said brand's app to find the other hotel. For a moment, he scrolled past my hotel, which clearly stated that it was sold out. That means he came here already knowing full-well we were sold out but expected a 'miracle' thanks to his status.

With some choices in mind, he left without any additional fuss. Nevertheless, I couldn't believe his gall. Even if we had his mythical 'spare shiny rooms,' I'd love to know what he thought he'd end up paying for a walk-in. Curious if he'll open a case with corporate...

"Request" is defined most simply as: "the act of asking for something to be given or done, especially as a favor or courtesy"

Guests seem to have a hard time differentiating a request from a guarantee. +10 points if the thing they're requesting is highlighted as such in writing, with the added disclaimer that it is "subject to availability." That's exactly what happened in this instance.

Sold out summer weekend; various groups staying over and every bed will have a head in it. One of said groups consisted of sports families, so our Two Queen option was a hot commodity, as were our complimentary cots.

This particular family, who I'll call the Times, booked just days prior outside of the already sold out group block. They scooped up one of the last available rooms, and it came in as what's known as a 'flow-through' from a third-party (but not prepaid.)

In short, this means they booked a requested room type, but that request is, as you guessed it, not a promise. This is outlined on the booking page before you even begin the reservation.

Mrs. Time was the first to receive the news that they got a single King. She was disappointed, but she didn't freak out. Mr. Time, meanwhile, took every atom of semi-passionate anger she didn't have and dished it out instead.

He defaulted to the common argument: "I understand we booked third-party, but this sounds like a problem between you and them--it's not our fault!" I reiterated the fact that we do not control what's on the third-party's site or how they word things, and his neck shot back as his eyes exploded open. He basically did the 😧 emote in about four instances as I broke down the fact that a request is well...a request.

"I have a party of 5, how are supposed to make do with only a single bed?" I continued to calmly explain that we were very much sold out, but if it would help, we could reverse the check-in and they could book elsewhere. I threw out some other hotels in the vicinity, which his wife was calmly paying attention to as he simply shook his head in frustration.

Anytime he would get wound up again about how he "couldn't believe we think this is acceptable", his wife would try to gentle parent him back down to Earth.

It was through Mrs. Time's own admission that they waited until the last minute to book because they weren't really sure if they'd make it. And by the time they knew, they simply took whatever option they saw available. Though she was also confused by the online listing, she at least understood there wasn't anything more we could do about it.

In the end, they opted to keep their room; guess little Timmy, Tucker and Tom ended up on an air bed or something.

I didn't know I could be judged for not doing a job that's not my job, but, you know...

I was alone by the desk when a lady called. She began the conversation with: "Hello there, do you offer any concierge service at this property?" I confirmed that we do not. Simple enough...oh--she continued asking her follow-up question anyway.

"Oh, alright. Well then, I'm coming to you guys soon and I was trying to get some info on any local spas?" I turned to the fictional camera off to the side for a second before answering as politely as I could: "I don't have any, to be terribly honest. If anything, I'd suggest looking around online; that'd be your best bet."

Ms. Spa didn't really like that answer, and she whined back: "Well, I tried that but couldn't come up with anything. I've stayed at other hotels that usually offer recommendations or something." I reiterated that I was unable to help her out as I genuinely knew nothing about what she desired. Admitting defeat, she said in parting: "Well thanks anyway, but just so you know, this was some really poor customer service."

For kicks, I did a quick search and there is apparently a spa not too far away. Didn't look into it further than that, but even so, it made me think: "So if I found it this quickly, then what was her story?"

"I don't CARE!" is the response I would love to one day provide to this seemingly never-ending story. Alas, that wouldn't be the customer service way...

This tale involves a young lady who kept looping back to the title whenever I challenged her expectations during her very late-night check-in process. What should've been a simple interaction took several minutes as a result.

Ms. Phone booked through a third-party (but it wasn't prepaid.) She was fully aware of this, yet for some reason, she kept referencing "the guy on the phone" as if he was the judge, jury and executioner.

The problem kicked off immediately when she tried paying in cash and I then informed her that we only accept cards. "But the guy on the phone said you would!" I told her: "I don't know who that is, but as stated here (I was pointing to a sign next to the card terminal), we only accept these major cards."

She huffed and asked if we had an ATM. We do, but it only does withdrawals. She huffed again and said: "I'll fix this and be back in a bit."

Seeing that she already popped in toward the end of my shift, the Night Auditor had come in just a few minutes later and I informed her of Ms. Phone. Seemingly on cue, she came back through the front doors and shored up right in front of me again. "I'm back!", she gleefully declared.

After confirming her ID, I then noticed that she booked one of our most expensive room types. I resisted the urge to let my internal smirk show on my face; I knew exactly where this was going, and sure enough, I was right.

When the total popped up on the card terminal that included the room, tax and incidentals, her mouth dropped open and she audibly gasped. "Why is it so high?!" I retold her what the total consisted of, including the incidentals, and once again she quoted her best friend: "But the guy on the phone said your incidenshulls (that's how she said it) were only $25!"

She asked me to cancel the transaction while she made a phone call; something she decided to do while still standing in front of me. A totally separate person on the phone ended up shooting over some money to her, thus allowing her to attempt her check-in for what was now the third time. And wouldn't ya know--she finally got in!

All the typical red flags were there, though. While she was nice, she was a local, it was late at night and she had just made the reservation a few hours prior. With all this in mind, rather than just leaving her card authorized, I took an advanced payment for her entire two-night stay and locked the ability to make room charges.

The NA told me later that she ended up coming down again an hour or so after to buy a ton of snacks from our Marketplace. This would have been a non-issue, if she didn't try to pay in cash again. When reminded about the cashless policy yet again, she deployed her line one more time: "But the guy on the phone said----"

I give up.

Just an interesting oddity I've noticed, especially as this is the busy season at my property: some guests don't know where they are.

I've seen some stories here where folks have wound up at the entirely wrong hotel, but only because it's the same brand in a different part of a city. That's innocent enough of a mistake to make. But, when folks are asking me if we're affiliated with an entirely different brand, it makes me chuckle a little.

Not everyone is a world traveler, of course. However, in those moments where I'm correcting them, I'm also thinking: "So you looked us up, booked here, drove/flew here and you still don't know quite where you are?"

As a related aside, I also find it comical when a guest is asking us to provide them with their rewards number. 9/10 times if you're asking, that means you don't use it, which means you don't need to ask because you're not gonna use it. Oh well, oh well...

If you have allergies to pets, then perform simple research and make sure you're not booking at a pet-friendly property.

It never ceases to amaze me when this issue comes up, because it's always self-inflicted. The other day, a gentleman texted us about a neighboring room. He wailed that there was a dog incessantly barking and looped in a question about whether a dog had recently stayed in the room he was occupying. Why? "My allergies have been flaring up since I got here!"

We apologized for the situation, and he was immediately offered a room move. He continued to complain, saying a line that I'm not even sure he understood where he was going with: "I guess the dog people must've lucked out before us. This is just all so very disappointing because I'll be here a week! I have my meds, but I don't feel like I should need to take them when I'm on vacation!"

For a second time: apologies provided and room move offered. But all we were met with was silence after that.

While I'm glad he dropped the issue in the moment, I have to imagine he'll still bring it up again at check out, like so many others do. Nevertheless, I would love to know in which universe it is a reasonable expectation that the medications you clearly need to function are then deemed to be a mere inconvenience because the powers of vacation act as a shield.

Fascinating.